Doctor Who Cuttings Archive

Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor

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Comic Is The Favourite But Eddie Izzard Says: You Won't Catch Me In The Tardis

BOOKIES are calling for a stewards' inquiry after a flood of bets on Alan Davies to be the new Doctor Who. They reckon that punters have received a tip-off from a television insider. William Hill said it has closed its books after a surge in interest had pushed Davies's price down from 8-1 to 3-1. A spokesman said: "The rush of cash we got in 24 hours is a pattern that can suggest that either it is known that Alan Davies has got the job, or that he is certainly one of the favourites to get it." A spokesman for Davies said: "It is speculation. Nothing has come through our office. Whether something is being negotiated, I just don't have any information. "Scripts are still being written and there will be no movement on it until next year." Since the BBC announced the return of the series, which was axed in 1989 after 26 years, speculation has been rife over who will be at the controls of the Tardis previously handled by William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy on TV and by Paul McGann in a 1996 TV movie. Eddie Izzard, who was tipped by Tom Baker, revealed yesterday he is not even considering the role. A spokesman for the comedian, currently on a US tour, said he was concentrating on his film career. Earlier in the week, Izzard himself said: "Tom Baker threw my name up, which was fantastic. It's a wonderful honour. But I don't think the BBC would want me. I think the BBC would say, 'Well, we want someone simpler and safer'." Other leading runners for whom odds had been quoted were Richard E Grant at 14-1, Sean Pertwee (son of Jon Pertwee) and Star Trek actor Patrick Stewart at 16-1, and Jonathan Pryce and James Nesbitt at 20-1. Bill Nighy, who is said to be a BBC favourite for the role, did not even have a price in the betting. Friends of the actor, who starred recently as a newspaper editor in the BBC political thriller State of Play, say he could well be interested in the role. But his spokesman said yesterday: "No one has approached Bill Nighy either directly or indirectly. The first we knew about all this was reading it in the papers." Nighy is said to be a favourite with the show's new writer, Russell T Davies, who penned Queer as Folk and will be preparing scripts for filming of the new Doctor Who series next year. So far, all the writer has said on who should take the title role is: "There is really no one in mind yet. Let's create the story that we want and then cast it." The BBC's Doctor Who website has been inundated as fans make their views known about the show, which is being made by BBC Wales and will probably be transmitted in 2005. Among the names touted are Alan Rickman, Derek Jacobi, Brian Capron, Kenneth Branagh, Martin Clunes and even David Blaine. One fan suggested Tony Blair - with George W Bush as The Master. When it comes to the good Doctor's sidekicks, Tom Baker believes Melinda Messenger would make the perfect assistant. He said: "She would be a really good scream and has bosoms. It doesn't really matter if she can act."

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  • APA 6th ed.: Francis, Pam (2003-10-12). Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor. Sunday Express p. 3.
  • MLA 7th ed.: Francis, Pam. "Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor." Sunday Express [add city] 2003-10-12, 3. Print.
  • Chicago 15th ed.: Francis, Pam. "Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor." Sunday Express, edition, sec., 2003-10-12
  • Turabian: Francis, Pam. "Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor." Sunday Express, 2003-10-12, section, 3 edition.
  • Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Bookies_Close_Betting_As_The_Smart_Money_Goes_On_Alan_Davies_To_Be_The_New_Doctor | work=Sunday Express | pages=3 | date=2003-10-12 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=29 March 2024 }}</ref>
  • Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Bookies Close Betting As The Smart Money Goes On Alan Davies To Be The New Doctor | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Bookies_Close_Betting_As_The_Smart_Money_Goes_On_Alan_Davies_To_Be_The_New_Doctor | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=29 March 2024}}</ref>